Hey all,
I’ve got a leaky power steering rack (cam style) behind the boot (replace the lock washer). Does this mean I have leaky oil seals on the rack? If so, is it a pain to replace…just replaced the boots, inner and outer tie rods and ball joints so just don’t want to have to undo everything. I have to get an alignment, so I don’t wanna have to go twice if that’s the case

Leaking from the red arrow

 

If you have power steering fluid in the rubber boots, then you have a leaky steering rack. The seals in each end of the rack goes and leaks the fluid into the boots. If the leak is small, you can still drive for a little while, but from experience, I can tell you that this problem will quickly escalate and the leak will be catastrophic. When that happens, there are several solutions you can consider:

1. Replacing the seals is a difficult and skill-intensive job that involves completely taking apart the steering rack. This can be quite expensive, and even if successful, the repair may not last for long.
2. You could purchase a rebuilt power steering rack, but this can be costly.
3. Alternatively, you could look for a used power steering rack from a junkyard or private seller, which is less expensive but carries the increased risk of the seals failing again.
4. A free and easy solution is to loop the lines on the rack and disconnect the pump, but this will result in the loss of power steering. Regardless of which option you choose, you will need an alignment after replacing the rack.

Hope it helps!

//Chris

 

Thanks! I think I have have to replace the rack anyway. The car failed inspection bc of slight wiggle in the tire (I changed all the ball joints, inner and outer tie rods and am finishing up the wheel bearings). I have a suspicion there’s still going to be slight play and I think it’s coming from the power steering shaft unfortunately. I know other models there is a spring and screw that adds tension on the rack on the other side of the power steering rack where the steering shaft connects to the power steering, and wonder if there is one on the 83 cam style PS.

I’ll call some yards and see if they have any but the new ones are pricey! Seems pretty straight Forward to replace tho based on longbows video, granted he does make everything look super easy!

 

Sounds like a plan!

Haha, I've watched so much of his content - he really is amazing and goes into depth - but "This can be done in a short afternoon" usually means an entire day for me

 

If you want to try a quick, inexpensive fix add some of this to your fluid -
If it's just worn seals this might help?

 

Definitely going to try this. I think I have some play in the steering rack so I'm going to have to see if the pre-tension piston can be tightened. Has anyone tried this?